"FORCED to break-the-law!---"Elogs and the Catch 22???"

Wait a second folks..I'm going to Fight for the OP on tis one...........

Not Everyone has a 'Regular" Run or Route on a daily/weekly basis....So Stop Right now with "Proper" Trip Planning, It doesn't work that way on 'irregular' runs.

Secondly.There isn't enough $$$ in this field for having to "Stress" over 14 hour rules (Am I Gonna make enough money today-Where can I stop? Shipper held me all day-etc etc)

Sure- He coulda stayed at the shipper all night,Or Stopped an hour earlier to find parking- WHO WANTS TO WORK LIKE THAT??

Answer me that 1.....Who Wants to Live their Life like that? I Sure don't and Neither does the OP .

Sorry,But With Paper,I Don't Stress If it takes me an extra 30 minutes cause Im having trouble with parking-Or Repairs, or Slow Shippers etc-I'm not going to stress I have to stress because of Others Habits.And Folks,trust me- Others don't care.

So I know how the OP feels about this- Adds extra Stress to an already Hectic Job- You guys that say "I ADAPTED" apparently don't mind sleeping in parking lots or shippers While everyone else went home to a bed...Or sitting at a truckstop 1 hour from home because your ticker said "stop driving"......

To me,A Device telling me how to do my job differently than the way I have done it safely in the last 30 years is simply a Child's play Sesame street Embarrassment to an industry I Am Very Proud of.

 

No. Some will let you park there for your 10 hour break, many won't. Showers and food, no unheard of but certainly not common.

There is nothing new about the HOS rules. Obviously your friend has ignored them for a long time. His company likely isn't yet prepared to follow the rules so what he says may seem like a big deal but it really isn't.

It used to be pretty much standard operating practice for most drivers to ignore the rules. With paper log books it's easy to make it look legal while cheating. With electronic logging it's not the case and as we all move to ELD we will need to adjust.

The good news is that a whole lot of people have made that adjustment and the world has not come to an end. The rest of us will also.

It affects how loads are planned and the biggest headaches will be felt in the dispatch chairs.

I'm not really looking forward to being kept honest but I'm not worried.

 

In all the years since the 14 Hour Rule started. I haven't found a shipper/receiver that falls for the "I'm required by Federal Regulations to park on your property..." Drivers and trucking companies are regulated, shippers & receivers are not regulated. They don't have to speed up, give anyone parking areas. etc.

Each driver has to figure out each situation as they come up.

 

So you leave and park on an exit ramp
How your accommodations there.
My company would pull me out of before this became a problem, and that happens a lot here, simple phone call to dispatch and explain the situation

 

So its the shippers fault if you run out of hours? They have better things to do then babysit the drivers.Its up to you to make sure you don't run out.How you do that is look at your available hours thryout the day and if you think you'll run out of hrs before you're unloaded or loaded then you tell dispatch so they can reschedule.

 

Patty...That's EXTRA work these drivers Shouldn't Have to do.........Its Really Easy to say something like you just stated- Target the 'Real" Problem, E-logs that don't accomodate anything- Slow Shipping Habits,Too Much volume on the street-etc etc....

let it sink in.

 

The only time a driver is "forced" to violate the FMCSR's is when they willfully chose to do it in full knowledge of the consequences. The elog has a countdown for your remaining hours, much better and easier than trying to calculate it on paper. If you have 6 hours remaining when you show up at the receiver and they tell you it's going to take longer than 4-5 hours to unload you, you reschedule your unload or roll the dice.

Not every situation is going to be ideal, especially in the winter. Suck it up and be a better driver. Don't expect anyone to help you out. You are the captain of your ship and you hold the wheel (both literal and figurative) in your hands. If you don't think you have enough time, you make it right.